By Luis Torres, Staff Writer/Photographer
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Not long ago, Chandler Smith’s NASCAR career was on the rocks.
The fear of not having a ride in any of the national touring divisions and the possibility that he might have to go back to work in construction was a focal point. However, things have changed where not only does Smith have a full-time ride in the Craftsman Truck Series but has the opportunity of attempting to make the 67th Daytona 500.
The deal of trying to make NASCAR’s premiere event had its hurdles as Smith is driving the No. 66 Garage 66 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, the very ride that was intended to be for Mike Wallace.
After NASCAR didn’t approve the 65-year-old driver to drive for Carl Long’s single-car entry, Smith got the nod to fill-in as he’s one of nine open cars fighting for four spots in “The Great American Race.”
During Daytona 500 Media Day, the former Joe Gibbs Racing driver in the Xfinity Series explained how grateful the opportunity came along at the last minute. In his eyes, it showcases how dependable the 22-year-old is in the garage where teams have reached out for his services as a driver.
“I’m one of the guys people call (if someone runs into an issue),” said Smith. “Definitely last minute, but really excited to be down here with Garage 66 and attempting to make the Daytona 500. Hopefully, we can make it in this time.”
Unlike Helio Castroneves, who has an Open Exemption Provisional to fall back on, Smith doesn’t have that luxury at all.
In fact, the pressure picked up after Wednesday’s practice session at Daytona International Speedway. Despite Smith being fourth quickest, the intent of the track time was figuring out how much single-car speed a car has.
Smith benefitted from having good drafting air that skewed the session results. Therefore, the concerns rose as Smith said during Daytona 500 Media Day that work must be done to even have a chance of being the top-two quickest open cars in qualifying.
Aware about the selfishness drivers can be, Smith is confident he’ll get some drafting help if the car showcases some prowess at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
“We weren’t anything impressive on single-car speed,” said Smith. “I ended up picking up the draft and kind of get the feel if our car can draft and suck up to other cars. I felt like it did, so I’m confident with that. But our single-car speed, we have a lot of work to do if we’re wanting to bank on qualifying on time.”
Should the No. 66 team not be among the two quickest open cars Wednesday night, the amount of disappointment from the team will be shown, including Smith.
He explained the potential outcome is a result of how much work and effort Garage 66 have put into their 500 program.
“Just knowing what went into this car and how many hours it went to this car. Fluffing and buffing. How much research it went into this car. We got a great engine with Yates. Everything looks great, but we were definitely looking to make it in on speed.
“Honestly, top-15 or top-10 is what we’re expecting. Being slow in practice was a gut punch, so I hope we can make some changes that we set for everybody going into this deal.”
Before Smith and Long agreed on a deal, discussions were had before the whole Wallace fiasco unraveled, but it was at a period when Smith wasn’t so sure if he could even attempt the Daytona 500. More so because of his Truck Series deal with Front Row Motorsports’ No. 38 team had to be built from the ground up and virtually at the last minute with Smith involved in the hiring process.
“Carl reached out to me awhile back with how late my deal came together at Front Row, we didn’t have a team. The team you’re going to see in the No. 38 Truck, we put together four weeks ago. I was in the process of trying to hire people, find a crew chief and put the puzzle pieces together all off-season.
“I was like, ‘Great opportunity, but I got to focus on my full-time gig.’ We’re in a bad deal over (at Front Row). The time worked out right where I can actually venture this now (with Garage 66) because we’re starting to get on our feet with the No. 38 group.”
In spite of all the pressure put on Smith, there’s always a plan on the table.
“God has a plan for each and every person here on earth. I was confident that his plans with me in NASCAR weren’t over yet and I was definitely confident in that,” said Smith. “But there’s still always that bit of uncertainty of what-if that every human has because it’s human nature.
“At the end of the day, pressure is a privilege to have. I’m privileged to be able to have the pressure to put a Truck team and be a bigger part than just a driver at Front Row Motorsports.”
Smith has a familiar sponsor sporting the Garage 66 effort as his decade-long partnership with QuickTie is sponsoring the Ford-powered machine for the Daytona 500. While Smith drives for Front Row Motorsports in Trucks, there’s no technical alliance involved, but Long’s team are no stranger to overcoming the odds at Daytona.
They’ve often been penciled in as one of the cars that’ll miss the Daytona 500 but have found ways of making the race with guys such as Mark Thompson in 2018 and Timmy Hill in 2020 making the field in the past. Something Smith hopes he can do in Thursday’s Duels as he hopes it’ll be a much better outcome than in 2023 when he missed the Daytona 500 driving for Kaulig Racing.
“We’re on our own island,” said Smith. “Carl has some good friends and good resources up his sleeve that was able to make this piece to where all of us are confident to make it on speed.”
Coverage of qualifying begins Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. ET on FS1 where Smith looks to avoid having to race his way into the 200-lap event the following night in the Duels.
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